Special SoCal happenings are popping up to pay tribute to the many delights of Down Under.

Published Jan 22, 2019 at 4:01 PM

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Aerial view of Lake Hillier, Middle Island near Esperance. Long to visit Australia's iconic Pink Lake? You can spend Saturday, Jan. 26 at Roo Coffee in Silver Lake sipping a sweet called the Pink Lake Shake.

What to Know

JW Marriott LA Live wine-tasting pop-up on Jan. 25 and 26

Pop-up visitors have the chance to win tickets to the G'Day USA Gala on Jan. 26

Pink Lake Shakes available at Roo Coffee in Silver Lake on Jan. 26

Taking a quick jaunt to Australia is a daily daydream shared by many wanderlusty Southern Californians, but, for the most part, time, commitments, budgets, and jobs keep us close to home, to work, and to all of our life stuff.

There are those marvelous moments, however, when Australia comes to us.

Not as in the entire gigantronic land mass, which absolutely is perfect right where it is, thank you very much. Rather, Australian treats and eats and stars all gather to pay tribute to Australia Day, the LA way.

After all, over tens of thousands of Australians live 'round these parts — the Australian Consulate General estimate is well over 40,000 — and you can multiply that number by ten to find the general range of visiting Australians each year (that stands at 411,000, per a 2017 LA Tourism report).

Australia Day is just ahead, on Jan. 26, and the South Australian Tourism Commission and Western Australia are giving Southern Californians a chance to visit the faraway land while staying mostly put.

You will need to get to the JW Marriott LA Live on Jan. 25 and/or 26 if you'd like to try wines of Adelaide and South Australia.

The "Multi-Sensory Wine Tasting Experience" will find inspiration in the d'Arenburg Cube in McLaren Vale, so prepare for some geometric wow of the visual assortment.

Also? Visitors to the pop-up will have the opportunity to enter for two tickets to the splashy G'Day USA Gala on Jan. 26, plus a night's stay at the DTLA hotel.

If you're more of a Pink Lake lover, and you dig desserts, best make your way to Roo Coffee in Silver Lake on Jan. 26.

Lake Hillier, a spectacular wonder found in the Western Australia Golden Outback, is the famous Pink Lake. And while you won't be sipping your shake on its shores, you will be at a business that's Australian-owned and -operated.

How are you celebrating Australia Day, while here in LA? So many local restaurants are owned by Down Underers, that there are multiple avenues to making merry.

But two offbeat choices, at the JW Marriott LA Live and Roo Coffee, are bringing a wine-wonderful, lake-lovely twist to the annual occasion.